Associate AI Engineer - JobID-0025

Innovative Defense Technologies (IDT) is a leading defense technology company focused on delivering mission-critical software and systems solutions to the U.S. government. They are seeking an Associate AI Engineer to design and deliver engineering-focused AI solutions that move beyond demos into reliable, mission-relevant systems, working closely with engineers and stakeholders to integrate AI capabilities into broader software architectures. Responsibilities Design and Build AI Solutions Design and implement end-to-end agentic AI systems that support planning, reasoning, tool use, and multi-step execution in real-world environments. Build modular, testable components that move from prototype to operational capability Integrate Models and Tools Develop integrations across LLMs, APIs, data sources, and Model Context Protocol (MCP) interfaces to enable intelligent agents to interact with external systems, retrieve context, and take action safely and reliably Develop Retrieval Pipelines Build and optimize Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) pipelines that connect models to live knowledge sources, structured data, and enterprise content to improve factual grounding, contextual relevance, and response quality Engineer Conversational and Agentic Interfaces Create conversational systems and intelligent agents with memory, contextual awareness, adaptive decision-making, and support for multi-turn user and system interactions Implement and Evaluate AI Workflows Translate technical objectives into working pipelines, run experiments, evaluate agent behavior, and iterate on prompts, orchestration logic, retrieval quality, and system performance to improve reliability and usability Scope and Define Requirements Gather, document, and validate technical and functional requirements from project artifacts, stakeholders, and mission needs to ensure feasibility, completeness, and alignment with operational goals Collaborate Across Teams Work closely with engineers, technical leads, and mission stakeholders to integrate AI capabilities into broader software and system architectures. Participate in technical reviews, design discussions, and delivery planning Support Technical Quality Contribute to testing, debugging, and performance optimization of AI-enabled applications, including edge cases involving context management, retrieval failures, tool execution, and orchestration logic Learn and Apply Emerging Practices Stay current on advances in LLMs, agent frameworks, orchestration methods, and applied AI engineering practices, and bring that knowledge into practical system design and implementation Communicate Technical Work Clearly document architectures, workflows, assumptions, and implementation decisions so that solutions are maintainable, explainable, and transferable across teams Skills Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Computer Engineering, Data Science, Applied Mathematics, Artificial Intelligence, or a related technical field, or equivalent full-time professional experience 0–3 years of full-time professional experience in software engineering, machine learning engineering, AI engineering, or related technical roles Ability to travel up to 10% of the time as needed Proficiency in Python, including experience with core libraries such as NumPy and Pandas Experience building software with one or more modern AI/ML frameworks such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, LangChain, LangGraph, Semantic Kernel, or AutoGen Familiarity with Large Language Models (LLMs), prompt engineering, agent orchestration, or conversational AI systems Familiarity with retrieval systems, vector databases, embeddings, or RAG-based application design Understanding of software engineering fundamentals, including version control, testing, debugging, and writing maintainable code Ability to work independently on technical tasks while collaborating effectively in a team environment Strong problem-solving skills, curiosity, and a builder mindset focused on turning ideas into working systems Experience building agentic AI systems that use tools, memory, planning, or multi-step execution Familiarity with Model Context Protocol (MCP) integrations or similar model-to-tool integration patterns Experience deploying AI services, APIs, or workflows in cloud or production environments Experience with vector databases, retrieval infrastructure, knowledge graph integration, or enterprise search Exposure to evaluation methods for LLMs and agents, including reasoning quality, hallucination reduction, tool-use reliability, and retrieval performance Experience with Docker, REST APIs, Git-based development workflows, or CI/CD pipelines Experience working on defense, government, or other mission-oriented technical programs Strong interest in building practical AI systems that must operate reliably in complex, real-world environments Benefits Generous benefits package Competitive PTO Paid holidays 401(k) with immediate vesting and matching 9/80 optional schedule (2nd and 4th Friday off every month) Tuition Assistance Reimbursement Program Professional Development Resources Pre-Tax Commuter Benefits Organization-Wide Monthly Tech Connect Events Annual Employee Recognition Awards Regular Social Events and Catered Lunches Company Overview Innovative Defense Technologies is an information technology company that provides software testing and data analysis services. It was founded in 2006, and is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, USA, with a workforce of 201-500 employees. Its website is http//idtus.com. Apply To This Job